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Oct 5, 2012

Pumpkin Chutney and some prehistoric utensils

I am a hoarder. There, I said it. But I'm not the only one. It runs through my veins. I come from a family of hoarders and the CEO of my hoarding brood is my maternal thati (grandma). Thati probably learnt the art from someone in her family, but what a boon it is to me now. Not only are we hoarders, but both my thatis (maternal and paternal) share a love of cooking. (Not to forget my mother who inspired me to cook healthy). And what do people who love to cook love even more to collect? Anything they can get their hands that is even remotely related to the kitchen. Like miniature pyrex mugs, stoneware and brass vessels used in the 1930s, baking tins and cookie cutters from the 80s, lead vessels (yes they used to cook in lead) and so many more antiques. Some of them are going to debut on the www this month.

Today's feature is a miniature stone bowl which was used before plastics reared their ugly heads into our kitchens. It belongs to my thati who has preserved it so carefully for all these years. Ironically it was used to store chutneys which goes so well with my chutney theme all this month at Vegan Mofo. It is slightly chipped off from one side, but I think it adds to the memory of that bowl. I wonder how many chutneys this bowl has seen before I decided to capture it for eternity.

And before I forget my daily task, here is today's find: Lettuce Free Vegan whose theme this month is vegan baby food. That food looks delicious even if you are not a baby and her 11 month old daughter is the cutest.

Winter is coming, but we're having some crazy heat in Bombay. Lucky for us though we get pumpkins throughout the year. The most commonly used one, specially by south Indian cooks, is the Yellow Pumpkin (also called Red Pumpkin colloquially). If you eat food in a south Indian home, you will probably eat this every three days. We love adding it into sambars or stews, my mom makes a killer pumpkin raita which I have have veganized of course. I also LOVE this Pumpkin & Fenugreek Soup which I make in the winter.

So for this vegan Mofo post number 5, I am going to elaborate on a very very delicious chutney. I absolutely love how so many different flavours are incorporated into this one pretty looking chutney and they all stand out so vividly. My mom and grandmothers make this chutney quite often and so will I from now on.

For this chutney I have used a small variety of the yellow pumpkin. I have no idea what it is called here, but it is not available throughout the year. It is harder than the usual big yellow pumpkin that we usually consume so it took a little longer to cook. But the end is worth the wait.

In a small pan, heat 1/2 tsp of oil. Add the asafoetida and red chillies and stir them around a bit. Don't let the chillis burn. When the chillis swell up add the chopped pumpkin and stir. Cover with a lid and let it cook for 5 to 8 minutes. If you find it drying up add very little water. I had to because my pumpkin was on the firmer side.

Once the pumpkin is done, put it into a small blender jar. Add the coconut and salt to it. Blend into a smooth chutney. In a small wok, heat the remaining 1.2 tsp of oil and add the mustard seeds and urad dal. Stir it around so the urad dal doesnt burn. When the seeds splutter and the urad is a nice light brown, add it to the chutney.

Serve with rotis, rice, dosas, bread or just eat it all!

Pumpkin Chutney in a (prehistoric) stone bowl

*** DO NOT throw away the skin and peels. Store it in the refrigerator if you have to. Because tomorrow I'll tell you how to chutney them!

10 comments:

Oh no the hoarder is telling me not to throw anything out ;)I come from a family of thrower outers, I wish someone at least given me a cool bowl like that one. I am loving your array of chutney. Great photo with the lined up ingredients.

i have been a silent admirer of ur blog..but the age old kal chatti made me emerge to leave to comment...love such awesome pieces of history...super cool..no expensive cookware can even match such pieces in the kitchen